Six of those who played last year and are still eligible were selected again.
The Oceania caging veterans included in the lineup are Jericho Cruz, Marvin Rabauliman, Allen Moses, Javen Tarkong, William Babauta and Antonio Borja.
The rookies include Joseph “Dimps” White and Jose Castro.
White was awarded Mt. Carmel School Knights’ most valuable player in the recently held Coalition of Private Schools Sports Association Basketball League where the MCS went undefeated and subsequently won the championship.
Castro played in the Marianas High School Dolphins in the Mariana Islands Interscholastic Sports Organization’s Basketball Tournament last year.
Coach Aguon and team manager Ed Manalili also picked five rookies as alternates. They are Rainier Deleon Guerrero, Edward Manalili, Lawrence Deleon Guerrero, Heartim Williams and John Villagomez.
These boys, except Babauta and Borja had been undergoing training since the tryout started months ago at the Northern Marianas High School.
Aguon said Babauta and Borja who go to University of Guam are doing their own workouts there.
The two veteran players he said will continue training with the team when they meet there in Guam at least prior to the tournament.
Another veteran player, Keoni Chariton did not miss a tryout but he is still nursing a right leg injury.
Chariton who played for NMC team got his injury during one of the games in the Inter-government-business Basketball Tournament.
Aguon said in case of injuries or other reasons that the 10 selected can not make it, there will be the alternates who will fill in the slots.
As the date for Oceania caging comes to a close, the draft picks practice sessions continue to intensify.
Aguon said they are now doing practice five days a week—Monday, Wednesday for track work at Oleai Sports Complex, then, Tuesday and Thursday on the court at the NMC Gym.
Aside from the veterans, 10 more new boys attended the tryout through which, Aguon said everybody had to “climb a bigger hill.”
The Oceania caging requires only 10 players for each team, the CNMI team. They will be accompanied by one coach and a manager when they travel to Guam.
Aguon has earlier said that one of the biggest challenges they are facing is the lack of fundamentals in basketball which the players should have learned in their earlier age.
Without those foundations, he said, “everything else is going to be hard.”
Nevertheless, he said the coaching team is trying to fill what’s lacking in the players.
If the new guys are fast enough to learn, Aguon said each of them will have a great chance to be included in the team.
Meanwhile, the NMI caging team is still facing financial challenges. The boys and coaching team still needs more to complete the amount of money needed for travel and accommodation.
For this, Manalili said they are soliciting support from the community for financial assistance.
